


Smoke and Mirrors

by snapeswidow



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Past Child Abuse, Swearing, Underage Drinking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-07-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:08:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25310614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snapeswidow/pseuds/snapeswidow
Summary: Everything is not what it seems.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23





	Smoke and Mirrors

**Author's Note:**

> TRIGGER WARNING- MENTIONS OF CHILD ABUSE! (For those who don't read tags)
> 
> This idea came to me while working on a longer story and demanded to be written. I'm in love with the idea of Minerva being like a mother to Severus, which stemmed from her being friends with his mother in their school days. I also love playing with the friendship between Severus and Regulus.

“Black, can you be any louder? I think you woke all of Hogsmeade!” Severus whispered venomously as his pissed companion stumbled into yet another suit of armor on their way to the seventh floor. 

“S’not my fault you wanted to traipse around the bloody castle after curfew, pissed off our arses, looking for my brother,” the younger boy slurred as he once again stumbled. “Couldn’t you have waited until breakfast or something to hex the bastard?”

Severus gripped his friend's arm to keep him from falling face first into another statue. “I didn’t ask you to come with me. I am more than capable of finding the seventh floor and your brother on my own.”

“That black eye tells a different story. When will you learn that you will never get Sirius alone? He’s too much of a coward to face you without those sidekicks of his.”

Severus gingerly touched his face, where the older Black had elbowed Severus earlier to get him off Potter. “That is why I am going to him instead. Potter was bragging earlier about sneaking up to the Astronomy tower tower with some tart, and I doubt he brought your brother along.”

Severus’ words set Regulus into a fit of giggles as the boy pictured his brother giving Potter tips on snogging. The more he thought about it, the louder his giggling got until he was full on laughing. “Merlin's saggy Y front’s I can't breathe!”

Severus tightened his hold on the younger boy, his gaze frantically searching the stairs above and below them as Regulus’ laughter echoed off the walls. “Damn it, Black!” He clamped a hand over his friend’s mouth to muffle the laughter as he heard footsteps on the stairs. “Shite, someone's coming.” Trying to determine whether the footsteps were above them or below them was nearly impossible with Regulus’ muffled laughter, so Severus pulled his friend along back down the staircase, praying their pursuer was above them. The pair made it to the first floor landing without encountering anyone, and Severus not hearing footsteps anymore let out the breath he didn't know he was holding.

“Oh, look, Sev, a kitty!” Regulus pulled away from Severus to squat down in front of a very familiar looking tabby. “Hey, there, little guy. Catch any mice tonight?”

Severus swore under his breath and wanted to kick his housemate in the head as the ‘Kitty’ transformed into their Transfiguration teacher. “No, Mister Black, I was hunting two snakes that are in deep trouble.” 

“Snakes?” Regulus’ head cocked to the side as he swayed. “But, wait, cats don’t eat snakes, Professor?”

Severus let a laugh slip out at the confused look on his friend’s face. “She means us, you moron!” he replied, smacking Regulus on the back of the head.

Shaking her head, Minerva pointed down the corridor behind her. “My office, now.” Walking behind the pair, Minerva wondered how in the nine hells they had not only made it up to the 5th floor without killing themselves but back down to where she was lying in wait. Unlocking her office door, she ushered the boys inside, motioning for them to take a seat in the chairs in front of her desk. She went about the room lighting the wall sconces and the fireplace, knowing the silence would make the pair more nervous than her yelling straight away. She knew the moment her plan worked as Severus hid his face behind that curtain of raven hair and Regulus began to squirm in his chair.

Severus watched the deputy headmistress as she moved about the room silently, never once losing sight of her. He knew never to let an angry adult out of your line of sight or let them know you were watching them, waiting for them to strike. He lowered his head, pretending to look at his hands as the headmistress took her seat, his eyes still trained on her.

“What in Merlin’s name would possess the two of you not to only sneak around the castle at 3 in the morning, but to do so while intoxicated?” She held up a hand as Regulus opened his mouth, no doubt ready to lie. “I am not stupid, Mister Black. I can smell the Firewhiskey from here.” She turned her attention to Severus, who quickly glanced down at his hands clasped tightly in his lap. “Mister Snape?”

Severus shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know, Professor.”

“Yeah you do!” Regulus cut off the deputy headmistress who opened her mouth to speak. “You were looking for Sirius. To return the black eye he gave you this morning in Herbology.”

“Shut up, Reg,” Severus spat, finally looking up from his lap. “For once in your life, shut the hell up! You’re the reason he and Potter came after me in Herbology! I should give you a black eye.” He gripped the arm of the chair to keep from hitting his friend.

Regulus shrank back at his friend's explosive anger, hurt flashing in his eyes. “You’re an Arse. No wonder you have no friends.”

Severus gripped his wand, wanting to hex Regulus but the deputy headmistress’ voice stopped him. 

“Enough,” Minerva yelled before a fight broke out. “Mister Black, where did the Firewhiskey come from?”

“I nicked it from home over the Christmas Holiday. I gave it to Severus for his birthday.” 

Minerva glanced at Severus who had gone back to hiding behind his hair. Today was indeed the boy’s sixteenth birthday, seeing as how it was nearly four now. ‘’So you both decided to celebrate Mister Snape’s turning sixteen by trying to ambush one of my Lions, pissed out of your skulls? Would that surmise the situation adequately?”

Regulus just shrugged in response, and Severus remained silent.

“What would your mother say, Mister Black, if I were to inform her of tonight's activities after she had explicitly told you to end your friendship with Mister Snape the last time the two of you got into trouble in Hogsmeade?”

Regulus’ face lost what little color it had at the deputy Headmistress’ words. His head hung in response before he weakly said, “She’d tan my hide for sullying the Black Family name more than likely.” He flicked his gaze towards his friend before turning back to the headmistress. “But I told her before and I’d tell her again that Severus has no friends here and someone needs to have his back against Sirius.”

Severus’ head flew up at his friend's words, a look of hurt briefly crossing his features before being replaced with anger. “Shut your bloody mouth, Regulus!” Severus growled. “ I don’t need your pity.”

“It’s not pity, but the truth! Our House doesn’t trust you because you keep sniffing up Evan’s skirt. And Lucius has the older students questioning how you ended up in Slytherin when there is no Pureblood family with the Snape name. I heard him tell Nott that the reason you lust after Evans is because one of your parents must have been a Muggle lover.”

With a feral sounding growl, Severus launched from his chair and tackled Regulus, both boys and the chair hitting the ground with a loud thud. “I SAID SHUT YOUR MOUTH!” Severus screamed, landing a blow to the younger boy’s face. Before he could land another, Regulus threw his head forward and headbutted Severus, a loud crack sounding in the room as blood began to pour down his face. 

Severus’ hand flew to his face as he was yanked off Regulus by the back of his robes. “I should expel the two of you for sheer stupidity alone.’’ Minerva physically shoved Severus back into his chair before rounding on him. “You, boy, are skating on very thin ice with me right now. You, of all people, should know that violence doesn’t solve anything, especially while drinking! What would your mother think if she saw you now?”

Severus’ anger doused quickly at the deputy Headmistress’s words, replaced by fear. He shook his head, blood from his broken nose splattering his robes and the carpet. ‘’I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he remarked coldly, a minute tremble to his words.

“So you forget why you came back to Hogwarts earlier than the rest of the students for Christmas break?” Minerva asked brusquely with an arched eyebrow. “I would think that would have been enough to keep you away from any form of alcohol frankly.”

“He had to pick snowdrops for a potion, professor. They only grow with the first snow of the new year,” Regulus answered, confusion evident on his face as he pulled himself from the floor. “He showed me the letter from Professor Slughorn when I asked why he wasn’t on the train.”

“Indeed he did, Mister Black.” Minerva watched as a look of betrayal came over Severus’ features, wondering briefly who it was aimed at before turning to Regulus. ”Mister Black, you are to return to your common room. You will report to your Head of House tomorrow morning with a letter to your parents explaining why you are suspended from Quidditch for the remainder of the year. You will not leave your common room for anything other than classes and meals. And I will be speaking with your Head of House to inform him of tonight's activities and to schedule your detentions.”

Regulus’ face was a sickly gray color now, making the forming bruise under his eye stand out. “Yes, Ma’am.” He shot a questioning look at Severus as he made his way out the door. 

Minerva summoned a House Elf to make sure the boy made it to the dungeons without further injury before turning her attention to the boy who gone rigid in his chair. She slipped her hand into her pocket, pulling out a handkerchief. She sighed as the boy flinched as she held it out to him, his body tensing even more as he glanced at it and then to her, before quickly returning his gaze to his lap. 

  
  


“What am I going to do with you, Severus?” she asked, more to herself than to the boy in front of her as she placed the handkerchief on the edge of the desk. She righted the upended chair that Black had sat in and sat next to Severus. When a few minutes of silence passed and the boy still didn’t move to wipe his dripping nose, Minerva sighed and grabbed the cloth and moved to wipe it herself. The boy flew from his chair as if hit with a  _ Stupefy _ , his back pressed against the far wall, his wand drawn. 

  
  


“Severus,” she began quietly, stopping as the boy’s eyes went wide as saucers, his gaze flicking between her and the door. The boy's body language reminded her of a spooked rabbit. One who dared not move for fear that the fox that hunted it would sense its location. 

“Don’t touch me,” Severus remarked quietly, his hand shaking as he lowered his wand.

Minerva motioned to the handkerchief, aware the boy still had a death grip on his wand. “I only meant to wipe away the blood you are dripping onto my carpet.”

Confusion crossed Severus’s features as his empty hand went to his face as if he didn’t remember the fight moments ago. When he pulled his fingers away and saw the blood, his confusion shifted back to fear as he remembered why his nose was broken. His eyes flew to the deputy headmistress as her words played in his head. “How do you know I came back early?” His voice was barely above a whisper.   
  


Minerva’s heart clenched at the wounded sound in Severus’ voice. “Your mother sent me a Patronus...”

Severus shook his head vehemently, cutting her off. “No, no, no. She wouldn’t. She knows not to use magic at home.” His wand clattered to the floor as he grabbed two fistfuls of hair, his hands brushing the new scar behind his ear. “He’ll kill her. He hates magic. If he finds out--you know what he did--he’ll kill her!” Severus choked back a sob as he slid down the wall. “I should have never touched his stuff...It’s my fault she saw...Oh, God...I’ve killed her!” He dropped his head into his drawn up knees as he continued to whisper repeatedly, “I killed her.”

Minerva rose from her seat, tears streaming down her own cheeks now silently as she slowly walked over to the sobbing boy. Summoning a pillow from a nearby sette, she placed it on the floor before sitting down next to the distraught boy. Carefully, she reached out a hand and stroked his hair. When he barely flinched at the contact, Minerva pulled him to her and carded her fingers through his hair. “Severus, you didn’t kill your mother, nor did your father.”

“He will, and then he will kill me,” he argued between sobs.

“He can’t hurt you or your mother anymore.”

Minerva remembered being awoken by a Patronus that she hadn't recognized Christmas night. She did, however, know the frantic voice demanding her help. She’d never forget the sight that greeted her as she Floo’d into a private room of the Leaky Cauldron. Eileen Prince sat on the bed, holding her son’s head in her lap, blood covering both of them. After checking that the boy was still breathing, Minerva sent for Poppy and pried the story of what happened from her former schoolmate and friend. 

Severus had apparently been caught by his father, nicking a bottle of gin to give to Regulus as a Christmas gift, since Regulus had promised the boy a bottle of Elven Wine from the Black’s cellar in return. Tobias had forced his son to drink the entire bottle as a punishment, which resulted in Severus getting violently ill.

Outraged at the mess, Tobas had broken the empty bottle over his son’s head, nearly slicing the poor boy’s ear off. Eileen had found Severus’ wand under the floorboards of his room and Stupefied Tobias before he could do more harm to their son. She then proceeded to cast the Patronus, remembering that Minerva had told her that she could send urgent messages with one in an emergency.

After Poppy had healed Severus’ injury and brought him back to the school, Minerva had gone back to Spinner's End with an Auror. With Eileen’s account of what happened and both Minerva and Poppy’s accounts of how severe the boy’s injuries were, Tobias was arrested. He would spend what was left of his miserable life in prison.

Minerva was pulled from her thoughts as she became aware of how still the boy had become. Thinking he had fallen asleep, she brushed the hair from his face, earning her another flinch. The boy’s face was red from crying, but void of any other emotion as he stared into space. ”Severus?”

“I don't want your pity,” the boy answered emotionlessly. 

“Now you sound like your mother.” Minerva sighed. “When are you going to learn the difference between caring and pity?”

“Why would you care now? You never have before.” A hint of anger colored the boy’s words. “No matter how many times I came to you or the Headmaster about Potter and Black, you never did a thing to stop them.”

“That is not true, Severus. They have served just as many detentions as you have for your hallway duels” Minerva raised an eyebrow. “I seem to recall you starting your fair share of those hexing fests.”

Severus pulled away from her, eyes narrowed and his features contorted in anger. “So it’s my fault they believe four-on-one is a fair fight?’’ Severus got to his feet and began to pace. ”Am I just supposed to let them corner me in the bloody loo and have a go at me without defending myself?”

“That is not what I meant,” Minerva stated as she stood as well.

“Now, you sound like my mother,” Severus continued, not having heard the professor’s words. “ _ Severus, don’t cross your father..Severus, if you didn’t leave your potions book out, your father wouldn’t have gotten upset…’you know your father had a temper, why must you always talk back!’’ _ He sneered, his eyes darkening. He walked in clipped movements as he paced in front of her for a moment. Each step fell heavily against the floor, reverberating around the room heavily. “Even she thought it was my fault that he beat the two of us!” He then stopped suddenly. His hand flew out from his side, snatching a hold of an empty teacup from a small corner table. He threw it as hard as he could at the wall, pieces tinkering as they hit the floor. He turned back to the deputy headmistress, shaking in anger. “She should have left me there to bleed to death,” he stated through a clenched jaw and hard, cold black eyes.

“Severus Snape, don’t you dare compare a fight between children with the actions of a grown man.” Minerva strode over to where the boy stood, wanting to hit him upside the head for his foolishness. “An adult should never lay a hand on a child in anger. Your father was a drunken coward, who feared your mother’s magic. Your mother was only trying to keep you out of his way, Severus, not blaming you for his actions.” She sighed. “I don’t ever want to hear you wish death upon yourself again, young man. I was terrified when I walked into that room and saw you lying there that night.’’

Severus looked away from her and stared at the pieces of porcelain littering the floor. “I don’t want your pity,” he whispered, drawing his hands to wrap around his waist in a tight embrace.

“Idiot boy.” Minerva sighed. “I am not going to repeat myself on that one.” She placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look up at her. “You deserved better. From all of us.” She looked down at him. He seemed so young to her, so innocent still. “I’m sorry, Severus. I truly am.” If only there were a way to remove all of the pain he had endured over the years… cruelness and anger that surrounded him and suffocated the light that she knew was still there buried in the darkness. Removing Tobias was a step, but there had to be more done. She’d speak with Albus once more about him. It was the least she could do. The boy needed someone to look out for him, one who had no ulterior motives, who did so because it was the right thing to do.

As the clock chimed out the hour, Minerva saw the sky outside was beginning to lighten. “Go to bed. You and I both had a trying night.” As the boy nodded and headed to the door, she added, “And no more late night strolls up to the seventh floor, sober or otherwise.”

With another nod, the boy pulled the door closed behind him.

* * *

Severus groaned as he opened his eyes the next morning, his head pounding as if a herd of Hippogriffs were dancing on his brain. As he wiped the sleep from his eyes he hissed in pain as his hand touched his nose and last night's events came rushing to the forefront of his mind. “Shite,” he swore under his breath and sat up too quickly. His head began to pound even more.

When the room stopped spinning, he peeked out of the curtains surrounding his bed and scanned the room for any signs of his roommates. When the room appeared to be empty, Severus slipped from his bed and headed into the loo. He winced as he caught sight of his reflection in the mirror over the sink as he splashed cool water on his face. He now had two black eyes and his nose was swollen from where Regulus had headbutted him last night. At the thought of his friend, Severus paused, dreading having to face the other boy. Shaking his head, he finished his morning ablutions and pulled on a clean pair of robes before heading out to the common room.

Severus was about to thank whatever Gods were listening that he hadn’t run into any of his Housemates when his name being called stopped him at the Common Room door. Recognizing the voice as belonging to Regulus, Severus steeled himself for an argument before turning around. 

“Shite, Sev.” Regulus flinched as he saw his friend's face. “I didn’t mean to break your nose.”

The taller boy shrugged. “I  _ did _ mean to give you that black eye, though.”

Regulus snorted, a smile breaking out on his face. “Yeah, I sort of figured I kinda deserve it.” The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out two vials and held them out to his friend. “Truce?”

Severus felt a bit guilty at the uncertainty in the younger boy's voice as he took the bottles and examined the labels. “Hangover cure and a Pain Relieving Potion?” He raised an eyebrow as he glanced back at Regulus. “I am not ingesting anything you brewed, Black. I’ve seen the aftermath of your potions. You’re worse than Potter.”

“Gods, no, I didn’t brew them!” The boy laughed. “They were left on your bedside table when I got up this morning. I nicked them and figured I could use them as a peace offering.”

“And yet you wonder why my trunk is warded heavily.” Severus snorted as he drank one potion then the other before handing the empty bottles back. He sighed as his headache disappeared along with the pain in his face. He stood for a moment, uncomfortable with wanting to apologize, but knew he should at least say something. “Did you write your letter yet?”

Regulus nodded. “Oh, yeah. McGonagall made sure she read it before I sent it to Mum. I don’t know who was more upset about my Quidditch suspension, Mum or Slughorn.”

“I’m sorry I got you kicked off the team,” Severus replied uncomfortably.

“Not your fault, mate. I snuck the alcohol into the school.”

“But if I hadn’t gone looking for your arse of a brother, we wouldn’t have gotten caught.’’

Regulus shook his head. “It was my mouth that got us caught.” He laughed. “Did I really call McGonagall ‘kitty?’

Severus smirked, feeling the mood lift around them, “You did.”

“Speaking of the kitty, she told me to give you these.” Regulus pulled a note and Severus’ wand from his pocket, handing them over.

Severus put his wand in the sheath he kept up his sleeve and stared down at the note. ”Did you read it?”

Regulus shook his head. “No, It wouldn’t open for me.” He then added cheekily, “Not even when I tried using your wand.”

“You are such an arse. First you steal my potions, then try to read my post.” Severus opened the letter and smirked as Regulus looked disappointed at his not being bested by a bit of parchment.

The smirk faded as he read the words written by the Headmistress.

_ ‘Mr Snape, _

_ Meet me in my office at noon as we have yet to discuss your punishment for last night's trek around the castle. Seeing as how your Head of House has his schedule full due to Mr. Black’s detentions and finding a replacement for the Quidditch Team, he has left yours up to me. _

_ Professor McGonagall _

  
  


Severus shoved the parchment into his pocket and glanced at the magical clock on the mantle of the Common Room fireplace which read 11:55. “Shite, I’m gonna be late. We’ll talk later, yeah?”

  
  


Regulus nodded and before Severus could pull the portrait closed behind him, Regulus called his name. ‘Happy birthday, Severus.’’ He then chucked a glass jar at his friend.

Severus caught the jar before it could hit the floor, a questioning look on his face as he saw it was a jar of bruise balm from the hospital wing.

“Nicked that one from your nightstand too. If you didn't at least try to apologize for last night, I was gonna let you walk to the hospital wing and try to explain your face to Pomfrey.” 

“Why am I even friends with you?” Severus groaned, his eyes betraying his humor though, as he slipped the jar into his pocket.

Regulus shrugged cockily. “Because you love my wit and charm?”

Severus opened his mouth to retort but the chiming of the clock interrupted him. “Shite.” He glared at Regulus who laughed before he pulled the portrait closed and ran towards the stairs.

  
  
  


Severus knocked on the deputy headmistress’ office door, clutching the stitch in his side from running up all those stairs. He had ducked into the Boy’s loo on the first floor just long enough to apply the Bruise Balm and was now almost fifteen minutes late. He was really going to hex Regulus when he saw him next. At the muffled ‘enter’ from within the office, Severus straightened and pushed the door open.

“You’re late,” Minerva spoke sternly, looking up from the essay she was grading as the boy stood at her desk. 

“I overslept,” he lied, not wanting to get Regulus into more trouble than he already was.

“I see.” She studied the boy standing in front of her before drawing her wand and Transfigured the settee in the corner into a student desk. “Since you seem to confuse the definition of pity and caring, you will be writing both definitions until there is no longer any confusion.” She handed Severus a roll of parchment along with a spare quill and ink. 

He glanced at the items in his hand, then to the deputy headmistress before slowly making his way to the desk and sliding into the chair. He snorted as a Muggle Dictionary appeared next to the ink pot. Dipping his quill into the ink, Severus began to write.

Minerva went back to her grading, the sound of both of their quills filling the office. When she had finished with her Second year essays, she glanced at the boy to see him hunched over the parchment, his face hidden by that curtain of black hair. She wondered how he could write like that, nose almost touching the paper without getting a crick in his neck. She cast a Tempus Charm and saw that the boy had been writing for nearly an hour and a half. “Severus.”

He startled at the sound of his name and splashed ink on the desk in front of him. “Shite” He tried to wipe it up with the edge of his robe before it stained.

“Language, Mister Snape.” Minerva reprimanded, before summoning the parchment to her. The boy had covered both sides of the paper with his spiky script. If she hadn’t known his terrible penmanship from grading his essays for six years, she would think he wrote illegibly on purpose. 

“Do you now understand the difference between the two, or did you just run out of room?”

“I understood it about halfway through the first page, Professor,” Severus answered defensively.

Minerva shook her head. “ I was joking about running out of room, Mister Snape.”

“Oh.” Severus glanced at the desk to hide the blush that rose in his cheeks.

Minerva snorted as she placed the parchment in a drawer of her desk. “As with Mister Black you are not to leave your common room for the next two weeks with the exception of classes, meals, and detention. Tomorrow night you will report here after dinner to begin your detentions.”

He nodded as he rose from the desk, rubbing his aching hand on his robes as he headed for the door. He walked back to the common room slower than he had come, wanting nothing more than to sleep the rest of the day away. He ignored the looks from the few Slytherins that were in the room as he made his way to his dorm and sat heavily on his bed.

As he pulled off his boots and robes, he noticed a small leather pouch sitting on the nightstand. After checking it for curses and hexes--and finding none, he opened it and pulled out a vial of Snow Drops with a little tag attached that had a cat's paw print on the front and a simple “Happy Birthday" on the back.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this little peek into the student life of Severus Snape. Please leave a review on what you thought and if you'd like to see more. Thank you for reading.


End file.
